iamgosu Posted April 26, 2009 Report Share Posted April 26, 2009 Wow, I just read your comments along with Eebee's and Xylem29's and I really just wanted to say thank-you. You all sound so nice and so real! I feared that dental school might be as catty and competitive as some of these discussion boards, but I'm confident now that this is just a manifestation of fear and anxiety. I so appreciate your posts and hope to meet you all in the fall. Good luck and keep me posted:) if everybody was an ******* on these forums, then damn dentists are *******s Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eebee Posted April 26, 2009 Report Share Posted April 26, 2009 I think the issue with these forums is that people tend to say things they wouldn't normally say, because technically their comments are anonymous. This leads to rude, and unneccesary comments. Thankfully, one of the goals of the interview process is to weed these people out! "If you dont have anything nice to say, don't say it at all" doesn't really apply here, haha. Now, I'm not the type that dances in the meadow amongst the roses and thinks that the world would be a better place if we all just smiled more often, but I do think that people tend to abuse their right to speek freely by saying things that don't really need to be said. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smilee Posted April 26, 2009 Report Share Posted April 26, 2009 I'm not the type that dances in the meadow amongst the roses Suuuuuuree eebee Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iamgosu Posted April 26, 2009 Report Share Posted April 26, 2009 I think the issue with these forums is that people tend to say things they wouldn't normally say, because technically their comments are anonymous. This leads to rude, and unneccesary comments. Thankfully, one of the goals of the interview process is to weed these people out!"If you dont have anything nice to say, don't say it at all" doesn't really apply here, haha. Now, I'm not the type that dances in the meadow amongst the roses and thinks that the world would be a better place if we all just smiled more often, but I do think that people tend to abuse their right to speek freely by saying things that don't really need to be said. the right to speak freely does not mean personally insulting comments is allowed. Sadly, a large percentage (dare I say majority?) of people in this world are a$$holes Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eebee Posted April 26, 2009 Report Share Posted April 26, 2009 Well, freedom of speech implies that you can say whatever the hell you want. I can tell you to **** off...(but I never would!! haha)...its mean and insulting, but it doesn't mean I can't say it. Usually karma kicks these people in the butt though, as we've seen from previous threads (wink, wink). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iamgosu Posted April 26, 2009 Report Share Posted April 26, 2009 Well, freedom of speech implies that you can say whatever the hell you want. I can tell you to **** off...(but I never would!! haha)...its mean and insulting, but it doesn't mean I can't say it. Usually karma kicks these people in the butt though, as we've seen from previous threads (wink, wink). what about racial comments? i thought people can get charged for some aspects of speech =/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xylem29 Posted April 26, 2009 Report Share Posted April 26, 2009 So get it back on topic somewhat, lol - for the people who got acceptances, do you have any advice or comments about how you did well on the interview? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dentss Posted April 26, 2009 Report Share Posted April 26, 2009 i didnt get accepted but i have heard this alot: just be yourself...now i dont know how tht works if yourself gets nervous on the interview Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eebee Posted April 26, 2009 Report Share Posted April 26, 2009 The whole "be yourself" thing was troubling for me as well. I wasn't as nervous as I thought I would be, but I didn't really have an opportunity to "be myself." They asked me 7 questions, I answered them to the best of my ability, and that was it. We didn't chit chat, there was no friendly conversation beforehand. How could I have been myself, really? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pearlywhites Posted April 26, 2009 Author Report Share Posted April 26, 2009 Honestly, my advice for the interview is to prepare, so that you can be yourself! First, I found as many CDA-type questions as I could (some from current students, some from the forum, etc.). Then I separated them into behavioural, situational and other (like "why dentistry"/"tell me about yourself"). Next I went through and answered them and found that a lot of my examples could be used for multiple questions. It was often difficult to come up with relevant examples, so I asked friends and family and usually after talking about it, I could generate something useful. If you really care about something, then you should feel nervous; however, nervous and unprepared vs. nervous and prepared are two totally different situations for me; the latter allowed me to feel confident going into both interviews such that I was able to smile and laugh and "be myself". Anyway, I am rambling now, but that was my strategy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Synlar Posted April 26, 2009 Report Share Posted April 26, 2009 My Western interview lasted a full hour; i checked the time once i walked out and thought :eek: . Try pulling out some corny jokes and see how the interviewers respond; mine kept laughing, and made me crack up too. I thought that was a good sign, but now I have to wait until June/July ugh. And even though the interview lasted so long, they didn't seem to care that I was going over the time limit... UofT's interviewers tried to 'rush' me, by saying things like, 'ok so what did you do... ok what was the outcome... what other avenues did you consider' when i was in the middle of explaining something. And Western even asked me why I wanted to be a dentist at the end, even though my interview was super long. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eebee Posted April 26, 2009 Report Share Posted April 26, 2009 Yeah, I did the same. I recorded myself in front of my webcam answering question after question after question...I feel like I really couldn't have prepared myself more than I did! I had hundreds of questions (obviously I didn't go throug them all, haha) and just kept trying to think of answers that could apply to multiple situations. Is there anybody that didn't prepare, but thinks that it went well? And what makes you think that? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dentss Posted April 26, 2009 Report Share Posted April 26, 2009 just curious did they ask all of you why you want to be a dentist...that was also the last question they asked me during the Western interview Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eebee Posted April 26, 2009 Report Share Posted April 26, 2009 Yup! They asked me why I want to be a dentist, and the qualities I have that would make me a good one! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smilee Posted April 26, 2009 Report Share Posted April 26, 2009 The whole "be yourself" thing was troubling for me as well. I wasn't as nervous as I thought I would be, but I didn't really have an opportunity to "be myself." They asked me 7 questions, I answered them to the best of my ability, and that was it. We didn't chit chat, there was no friendly conversation beforehand. How could I have been myself, really? Yeah.. the whole structure of the interview makes it really hard to "be yourself". For this reason though the interview isn't marking you on your personality.. they're marking you on your answers. I wouldn't worry too much about that though - as long as you seem nice, friendly, and not too nervous then I'm sure you can leave the interview making an overall good impression Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fraises Posted April 26, 2009 Report Share Posted April 26, 2009 i didn't get an early acceptance, but to prepare for my interview i basically got out my resume and practiced describing different things i've done =] yep, they asked me why i wanted to be a dentist too~ other friends i've spoken to seem to all have gotten that question as well, maybe it was a "must-ask" question? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HermeyTheElf Posted April 26, 2009 Report Share Posted April 26, 2009 Actually, they didn't ask me "why" I wanted to be a dentist. I was asked about who I would want to talk to alive or dead and also what qualities I have for dentistry. I was thinking I would get the why dentistry question, but didn't. My interview ran long too (I believe it was over 45 minutes) likely because I talk a lot and I asked each interviewer individually a question once the marking stage was over and these questions tended to lead to short discussions between the entire group. I planned on prepping a lot for the interview, however I had 3 exams the following week (Monday, Wednesday and Thursday) so I didn't get as much prep done as I had wanted. I purchased that online book with the CDA questions and went through a few of those with my mum. I also have a friend who is at UofT dent and talked to her. She told me to prep as little as possible...the answers should be organic and I totally agreed with that statement. She told me the qualities the interviewers are looking for are: ethics, leadership, teamwork, companionship and confrontation/disagreement. Based on that, on my way home to London, I talked to my mum about different experiences I had had in my life which would portray these qualities and how I handled myself in situations testing these qualities. On the day of the interview I just tried to stay as calm as possible. Obviously when I went into the interview I was freaked right out, but at that point there was nothing more I could do. I also tried to rationalize with myself that these people are professionals, they know what makes a good dentist and the qualities required to succeed in dental school. Therefore, the best thing I could do for myself was be honest about my answers and who I am, and if that isn't a fit for what they are looking for then they would save me spending $32,000/yr on a career that I truly wasn't meant for. Hope this answers some questions:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dentss Posted April 26, 2009 Report Share Posted April 26, 2009 Actually, they didn't ask me "why" I wanted to be a dentist. I was asked about who I would want to talk to alive or dead and also what qualities I have for dentistry. I was thinking I would get the why dentistry question, but didn't. My interview ran long too (I believe it was over 45 minutes) likely because I talk a lot and I asked each interviewer individually a question once the marking stage was over and these questions tended to lead to short discussions between the entire group. I planned on prepping a lot for the interview, however I had 3 exams the following week (Monday, Wednesday and Thursday) so I didn't get as much prep done as I had wanted. I purchased that online book with the CDA questions and went through a few of those with my mum. I also have a friend who is at UofT dent and talked to her. She told me to prep as little as possible...the answers should be organic and I totally agreed with that statement. She told me the qualities the interviewers are looking for are: ethics, leadership, teamwork, companionship and confrontation/disagreement. Based on that, on my way home to London, I talked to my mum about different experiences I had had in my life which would portray these qualities and how I handled myself in situations testing these qualities. On the day of the interview I just tried to stay as calm as possible. Obviously when I went into the interview I was freaked right out, but at that point there was nothing more I could do. I also tried to rationalize with myself that these people are professionals, they know what makes a good dentist and the qualities required to succeed in dental school. Therefore, the best thing I could do for myself was be honest about my answers and who I am, and if that isn't a fit for what they are looking for then they would save me spending $32,000/yr on a career that I truly wasn't meant for. Hope this answers some questions:) nail in the coffin lol...btw i also got asked who i would like to meet...although my dents interest question was not followed by the qualities i possess part which kind of scares me...lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fraises Posted April 26, 2009 Report Share Posted April 26, 2009 if you think about it though...why you want to be a dentist is kind of connected to the skills that would make you a good dentist... if someone didn't like hands-on work or sucked at it, they probably wouldn't like to be a dentist hehe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dentss Posted April 26, 2009 Report Share Posted April 26, 2009 true...thts how i answered it...by talking about experiences, skills etc so i guess there is that overlap... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
somerandomrad Posted April 26, 2009 Report Share Posted April 26, 2009 Congrats to all those who got early acceptance at UWO. If any of you are looking for a place to live in London I have a pretty good fully furnished place. PM me for details. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D_Block Posted April 26, 2009 Report Share Posted April 26, 2009 Here are some of the things I did before going into my interviews: -Went over each of the 7 competencies being tested for in detail (used the TopStar Interview Guide for this) -Went over several practice CDA questions (used TopStar Question Bank for this) -Thought about personal experiences by self-reflection and speaking with friends -Did a couple mock interviews with friends -Bought a nice ballin' suit lol Everything has been pretty much mentioned (like preparation and being honest with your answers), except I think the importance of non-verbal communication. My answers at the UWO interview were much more comprehensive and in depth than my UofT interview but I was fortunate to get into both. If I think about it, the one thing that was consistent at both of my interviews was how I presented myself - I mean things like: Well-dressed, good posture, strong hand shake, facial expressions, eye contact, etc. and most importantly, bring high energy. I was always enthusiastic in answering the questions and made it look like I just gave the best answer ever, even if it lacked in depth. I also used a LOT of hand/arm gestures to prove my point. Although these are simple little things, I think they can make a big difference. If you just show that you are excited to be there, it can go a long way. As far as 'being yourself' issue goes, what I did was put myself in the situation that was asked in the question. For example, if the question had to do with something tragic happening to my roomate, I would actually take a few seconds and imagine my rommate who I've known for 6 years and is one of my best friends in that situation. This allowed me to be more passionate when answering the questions. Anyways, these are just my 2 cents. Hope it helped. Feel free to PM me! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eebee Posted April 26, 2009 Report Share Posted April 26, 2009 Hey D_Block, check ur private messages! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CharlieSixx Posted April 27, 2009 Report Share Posted April 27, 2009 I have 90+ average (actually 91% in first year and I am in second year right now but expecting 90+ because only finals are left) and AA is 21. Keeping my fingers crossed for June. Hey CharlieSixx How did you do in your interview? As I mentioned I also have 91% average but didn't get early acceptance but looking at stats of people who got it I am feeling some confidence (earlier I thought it may go 95+) but interview is something whose result you don't know. I feel my interview was good but still that's my opinion. I don't know how my interviewees felt! Hey Kittyp, I have applied to Western for three years now with a 88% the first year and then 91% for the next two, the first two times I had a DAT AA of 19 and I had to retake them this year and ended up with a 21. So it seems like I should have a pretty good chance, but each year it seems like I've been getting screwed on the interview portion. This year the interview felt like it went pretty well. I thought I answered the questions the best this time, but it was also the shortest one I have had yet and so that may have been a problem. Who knows though really... I really think Western should release your interview score and it would be nice to be able to see some comments even from your interviewers. Anyways, i think that as long as you keep up the great marks (a 91 in first year is awesome) and you did well on your interview you should have a pretty good chance this year. I really hope you get in too, because I don't want you to have to wait around for three years like I have! But yeah, don't worry about it too much, July will be here before we know it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eebee Posted April 27, 2009 Report Share Posted April 27, 2009 Kittyp, getting in after 2nd year is extremely difficult, so don't feel discouraged if you don't make it this year! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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